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Hymn the Eternal Song
|image = Picture |image-size = |image-caption = Portrayed by: Elvis Presley |Created By= Tele |status= Alive |Gender= Male |Age= 4000 |Species= God |Position= That's cool with me, it's not my favorite, but I'll do it for you |affiliation = Himself|species = God}}All stories have a rhythm. They begin with an opening that draws the audience in, the middle is filled with events that both affirm what kind of a story it is and surprise the audience, and then comes the end where everything gets wrapped up and you feature a teaser to plug the sequel. Good stories have a life of their own. Music functions exactly the same way. As do worlds. In the universe of Once Upon a Nightmare, these stories, songs, and poems have been personified in a deity that is Hymn, the Eternal Song. Hymn is the embodiment of the Eternal Song. It is a difficult question to say whether it exists because of him or if he does because of it. Either way, the Song is the music that plays along with the world. Every action, character, feeling, event, and element of the world is reflected in the ever-changing melody of the Song. Hymn is the gatekeeper of this incredible and powerful, completely intangible and ethereal force. By gifting temporary access to the Song he can inspire great works of art from others. Even he would be hard pressed to withold such a mighty power completely, and so there is always some of the Song leaking out into the world. This allows for people to create music without his direct influence but, more importantly, it is what allows people to hear and express the world around them. If a tree falls in the forest and Hymn had cut the tree off from the Song, it would not make a sound. Hymn is a selfish, arrogant, and at times woefully irresponsible deity. This trait stems from his knowledge that the world he inhabits is like one of the many works that have been made in his name and worship. It is a story, with a beginning, middle, and an end. He knows the beginning by rote. To hear him say it, he may have been the second being to even be aware in the universe but he went back to sleep because he was bored. The middle of the story, with its twists and turns, is unfolding around him and he is very aware that there cannot and will not be a status quo. Eventually things will change. The end he cannot see yet but he fears it and, like many things that he simply doesn't want to deal with, that means he's going to ignore it and try to have as much fun as he can. His loss of powers has been upsetting. He enjoyed his superiority over the other races in every possible sense. When the war happened with the Fae he was barely involved in the fighting itself but took special pains to inspire rousing marching songs for both sides. After the Fae were banished he continued to feed them influence and inspire heartwrenching songs of loss. When the humans were created he found new playthings, even more easily controlled, and gave up on the boring, immortal fae entirely. The humans proved to be a completely satisfying diversion. He fostered a cult in his honour, created countless songs about the world, the gods, himself, and any other subject. it was a bounty of worship and Hymn loved every moment of it. He also loved walking among the mortals, and playing among the mortals, and fornicating among the mortals. Especially fornicating. But like all stories, things had to change, and the Gods fell from Caelum, the Walking Starvation spread across the land, and Hymn found himself stripped of most of his godly might. He has taken to what he knows best, better than any living being, and he travels the world applying his skills and what magic remains within him as a minstrel. Allies and Enemies Hymn pays little attention to mortals he may have crossed in some way, and he's crossed a number of mortals. Aside from a few exceptions he barely remembers their faces moments after they leave his sight. Some of those exceptions include: - Eurydice: Eurydice was a stunningly beautiful young woman that Hymn encountered in Solhara, took under his wing, and indoctrinated into his temple cult. She was one of his favourites for her beauty, her lovely singing and dancing, and her willingness to share his bed. At least at first. As time passed, Eurydice grew more self confident and spurned his advances and offers. After the third time she denied him he flew into a rage and cursed her, cutting her off from the Eternal Song and all other sounds. Forevermore she would only be able to hear his voice or him playing the Song, until she repented and accepted his offer to be his wife. He only wants her to wed him so he can sleep with her again and would not take the union seriously. He has many other 'wives', most of whom he has forgotten. - Orpheus: Orpheus was a young minstrel that Hymn happened to hear playing in a tavern. The boy was so skilled that even Hymn was impressed. For reasons unknown, Hymn approached the boy after the show and offered him a gift, a wondrous Golden Lyre, from the God's personal collection. The only catch was that the boy had to accept it willingy and carry it with him always. Somewhat drunk and naive, Orpheus accepted, and was also cursed as he took up the instrument. Orpheus now hears the Eternal Song, constantly, and only by playing the Lyre for an audience can he relieve the pressure this puts on his mortal mind. Hymn also has mixed relationships with all of his fellow gods. He has no particular enemies among them since he's remained either completely neutral in almost every conflict. They regard him as either a charming idiot or an annoying child but nothing worth getting worked up over.